Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) is blaming President Trump for his state’s $2.3 billion budget shortfall.
According to Cuomo, it was Trump’s tax cut that caused “many of the state’s richest residents — who pay 46 percent of the state’s income tax — to either change their primary residence or leave New York entirely.”
Let me back up a bit…
What Trump’s tax reform did was to restore fairness to the tax code, was to put an end to the injustice of all Americans — including those in the middle class — paying for the sky high tax rates in states like New York.
You see, before Trump reformed the tax code, all Americans were subsidizing the rich.
It used to be that you could write off every penny of your state income tax on your federal income tax. Trump put an end to this outrage. Here’s how it works…
In the state of New York, if you earn over $1.078 million per year, you pay an income tax to the state of almost nine percent.
In other words, using round numbers, a New York resident who earns $10 million owes the state of New York close to $900,000 in income taxes. But…
Democrat-run states like New York knew that their rich residents would not feel the sting of that $900,000 tax bill because that $900,000 could be written off of their federal tax bill.
Basically, this was a sleazy way for Blue States to steal money from federal taxpayers, to make all of us pay for their grotesque tax rates. These Democrat-run states not only got all of this tax money, they also avoided getting voted out of office for over-taxing because the federal write-off removed most of the sting for the wealthy taxpayer.
Thankfully, Trump’s tax bill put an end to this shell game. Whereas before there was no limit on the amount of state income tax you could write off on your federal taxes, now there is a $10,000 limit. This means that the poor sap gutted for $900,000 in income taxes by New York, now eats $890,000 of it, which is as it should be.
Hey, if you’re a rich guy who thinks your taxes are too high, instead of making middle class taxpayers subsidize your ass, maybe stop voting for Democrats? Just an idea.
But now Cuomo is whining about the Orange Bad Man’s tax reform messing up his budget.
“It literally restructured the economy to help red states at the cost of blue states,” he boo hoo’d. “Everything we did economically is right. We tightened our belt, we cut taxes, we’re creating jobs, and here’s a penalty just because we are Democrats.”
Cuomo is not even telling the truth about what caused his shortfall, but even if he was, what this far-left Democrat is actually complaining about is Trump closing a loophole for the super-rich, is people fleeing his state because they are now forced to pay all of that 9 percent income tax now that it can no longer be written off.
The truth, though, is spelled out very well by economist Marty Cantor, who laid it out for a local news outlet.
“The problems here are caused by the governor and his administration,” he told News12, “It’s too expensive to live on Long Island and in New York state. Taxes are too high, people are leaving. It has nothing to do with Trump.”
Here’s the kicker: The $10,000 write-off limit did not go into effect until 2018. So how does Cuomo explain 2017’s $4.4 billion deficit? How did the Orange Bad Man create that one?
During the 1980s, Ronald Reagan slashed taxes and the result was a near doubling of annual tax revenues to the federal treasury.
High taxes hurt productivity and discourage investment, which in turn reduces tax revenue.
We are seeing the same thing now. Trump cut taxes, our economy boomed, and now the federal government is collecting a record amount of taxes.
Democrats feel all kinds of virtuous when they say “raise taxes on the rich,” but raising taxes can decrease tax revenues. No one wins in that scenario.
Low taxes create a flourishing economy, which increases tax revenues. Everyone wins.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.
Comments are closed.